2015’s Las Vegas Story tells the story of Maria (Christina Bocanegra), a 30ish single mother with four kids, a house that she has to pay the bills on, and an adorable dog that gives her quizzical looks whenever she leaves for work in the middle of the night.

Maria works as an escort, meeting with men in hotel rooms and collecting enough money to keep her family fed and to prevent the house from falling apart.  When her friend and former mentor, a stripper named Izzie (Francesca Fanti), comes to Vegas, Maria allows Izzie to say with her.  When another old friend named Doug (Wade-Allain Marcus) shows up, Maria allows him to crash on her couch despite the fact that Doug is a drug dealer and he’s gotten in trouble with some very bad people.

Las Vegas Story has the usual collection of gangsters and corrupt cops that you would expect to find in a film like this but, ultimately, it’s more of a character study than a typical narrative.  The film follows Maria over the course of her nights.  Maria isn’t ashamed of how she makes her money but she doesn’t have any illusions about the business either.  Las Vegas Story is about a woman doing what she has to do to support her family and Christina Bocanegra gives a strong and sympathetic performance in the lead role.

Maria’s most faithful client is played Eric Roberts and it must be said that Roberts give an excellent and rather poignant performance as a businessman who is terminally ill and who seems to sincerely care about Maria.  Roberts doesn’t have a huge role but he definitely makes an impression and shows that he’s still more than capable of giving a memorable performance.

Previous Eric Roberts Films That We Have Reviewed:

1. Star 80 (1983)
2. Runaway Train (1985)
3. Blood Red (1989)
4. The Ambulance (1990)
5. The Lost Capone (1990)
6. Love, Cheat, & Steal (1993)
7. Voyage (1993)
8. Love Is A Gun (1994)
9. Sensation (1994)
10. Dark Angel (1996)
11. Doctor Who (1996)
12. Most Wanted (1997)
13. Mercy Streets (2000)
14. Wolves of Wall Street (2002)
15. Mr. Brightside (2004)
16. Six: The Mark Unleased (2004)
17. Hey You (2006)
18. Amazing Racer (2009)
19. In The Blink of an Eye (2009)
20. Bed & Breakfast (2010)
21. Enemies Among Us (2010)
22. The Expendables (2010) 
23. Sharktopus (2010)
24. Beyond The Trophy (2012)
25. The Dead Want Women (2012)
26. Deadline (2012)
27. The Mark (2012)
28. Miss Atomic Bomb (2012)
29. Bonnie And Clyde: Justified (2013)
30. Lovelace (2013)
31. The Mark: Redemption (2013)
32. Self-Storage (2013)
33. A Talking Cat!?! (2013)
34. This Is Our Time (2013)
35. Inherent Vice (2014)
36. Road to the Open (2014)
37. Rumors of War (2014)
38. Amityville Death House (2015)
39. A Fatal Obsession (2015)
40. Stalked By My Doctor (2015)
41. Enemy Within (2016)
42. Joker’s Poltergeist (2016)
43. Prayer Never Fails (2016)
44. Stalked By My Doctor: The Return (2016)
45. The Wrong Roommate (2016)
46. Dark Image (2017)
47. Black Wake (2018)
48. Frank and Ava (2018)
49. Stalked By My Doctor: Patient’s Revenge (2018)
50. Clinton Island (2019)
51. Monster Island (2019)
52. The Reliant (2019)
53. The Savant (2019)
54. Seven Deadly Sins (2019)
55. Stalked By My Doctor: A Sleepwalker’s Nightmare (2019)
56. The Wrong Mommy (2019)
57. Exodus of a Prodigal Son (2020)
58. Free Lunch Express (2020)
59. Her Deadly Groom (2020)
60. Top Gunner (2020)
61. Deadly Nightshade (2021)
62. The Elevator (2021)
63. Just What The Doctor Ordered (2021)
64. Killer Advice (2021)
65. Night Night (2021)
66. The Poltergeist Diaries (2021)
67. The Rebels of PT-218 (2021)
68. A Town Called Parable (2021)
69. Bleach (2022)
70. My Dinner With Eric (2022)
71. Aftermath (2024)
72. Devil’s Knight (2024)
73. The Wrong Life Coach (2024)
74. When It Rains In L.A. (2025)